Airbus Updates No.3820

 

China Airlines Airbus A321neo Conducts Maiden Flight Between Taiwan & Hong Kong

On March 27th, the all-new Airbus A321neo aircraft for China Airlines made its spectacular debut on its maiden flight from Taoyuan, Taiwan to Hong Kong. Upon receiving a water salute from the fire engines, flight CI 909 took off from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 10:24 am. The flight is scheduled for two daily passenger or cargo-only return flights before the airline allows for the fleet to be progressively dispatched to other destinations.

To celebrate the new aircraft's introduction into commercial service, China Airlines prepared an aromatherapy gift pack that included a hand wash, lotion, and light perfume for passengers on the first return flight back to Taiwan. And for additional peace of mind, the same passengers were also given an in-flight protection pack containing a face mask and alcohol wipes during the flight.

The Airbus A321neo passenger aircraft will be the main feature on regional routes for the Taoyuan-based carrier and is configured for 180 seats including 12 in Premium Business Class and 168 in economy. The spacious and comfortable cabins are designed for contactless service and enhanced epidemic prevention.

Business travelers and tourists flying on this route will be welcomed by brand-new cabin facilities. This includes fully reclinable seats in Premium Business Class, with the latest in-flight entertainment system and also state-of-the-art seatback displays.

Before starting on regularly scheduled light services though, this particular Airbus A321neo will be scheduled to other destinations such as Manila, Palau, and Yangon. And then, starting from May 4th, the Airbus A321neo will be scheduled to operate on the prime Songshan-Tokyo (Haneda) route with services set for every Wednesday and Saturday.

Small, but green and mighty

The neo promises to be 15 to 20% more fuel-efficient than the previous generation of narrowbody aircraft. Its noise footprint and harmful emissions are already 75% smaller and 50% lower respectively. What's more, China Airlines has specifically arranged for the new Airbus A321neo aircraft to operate using Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) on the ferry flight back to Taiwan, as this helps to further reduce emissions by another hefty 8%.

These tangible improvements in fuel efficiency represent the airline's commitment to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, reducing its greenhouse gas emissions as well as protecting the environment.

And that's not all, as the Airbus A321neo was also chosen for its high capacity and extreme versatility in its cargo handling system, which allows for China Airlines to better focus on the current demand levels for air cargo. This means that whenever the aircraft is not being utilized for commercial passenger services, the airline can opt to have it used for cargo-only flights to better optimize profit returns - a general win-win situation for the carrier.

Possible new entries

The Skyteam member airline has 25 of the aircraft type in Airbus' order books to improve on its efforts to become a much more environmentally-friendly airline. Three have already been received and will soon be progressively introduced into service. Another seven more are expected to be delivered this year.

Airbus Updates No.3541

 Azores Airlines Launches Madeira – New York A321neo Flights

Azores Airlines has submitted schedules to OAG to begin a brand-new Funchal, Maderia, to New York JFK service on behalf of tour operator Inovtravel. While not yet available bookable at the time of writing, expect it to be officially announced shortly. The airline has a long history of serving the US and Canada from Ponta Delgada, the Azores, focused on ex-pat demand.

This A321neo is one of seven aircraft in Azores Airlines’ fleet. Photo: BriYYZ via Flickr.

What’s happening?

Azores Airlines has filed to operate Funchal to New York JFK once-weekly from November 1st using the 186-seat A321neo (non-LR). Some 21 round-trips are planned to last until March 21st, just before the end of the northern hemisphere winter season. The planned schedule, based on mid-November, is as follows.

• S4263: leaving Funchal at 16:00 and arriving JFK at 18:50
• S4262: departing JFK at 20:50, arriving back at 08:05 the following day

The 3,158-mile route would have a seven-hour and 50 minute block time outbound and six hours and 15 minutes back. The big difference is, of course, because of wind direction. The aircraft used is scheduled to arrive from Ponta Delgada at 14:40 and depart back to the Azores at 09:35 the following day.

Azores Airlines to the US and Canada

While Azores Airlines operated one-offs from Boston to Funchal in 2005, 2006, 2016, and 2017, its network to North America naturally revolves around Ponta Delgada and Terceira in the Azores, the so-called Hawaii of Europe.

From September 2021, the carrier offers Ponta Delgada to Boston (up to five-weekly) and Toronto (three-weekly), both year-round. It also has Terceira to Boston and Toronto (both once-weekly) until late October. Terceira-Boston is the shortest transatlantic A321LR route, while Chicago-Stockholm is the longest.

In 2019, Azores Airlines served Montreal from Ponta Delgada (a very long-standing route) and also Terceira to Oakland, 4,907 miles away. Oakland, in California, has been served non-stop since 2014, and between 2007-2014 variously via Toronto Hamilton or Toronto Pearson.

The addition of Funchal-JFK means that Azores Airlines will have five transatlantic routes between September and December. Photo: Arran Rice – Simple Flying.

Why are they operated?

Existing routes to Toronto and Boston are driven by those originally whose background is originally from the Azores. Over 500,000 Portuguese nationals and those of Portuguese heritage live in Canada, especially in the Toronto area.

The Greater Boston area has the highest number of Portuguese-Americans in the US, with the San Francisco Bay area the third-highest. Azores Airlines revolves around this ethnic demand (and tourism to the island), with easy connections to the Portuguese mainland also available.

This ethnic demand mainly drove TAP Air Portugal to open Ponta Delgada to Boston and Toronto in 2020. The country’s flag carrier used A321LRs, a type keenly used now – along with the A330-900 – from Lisbon and Porto.

Azores Airlines’ A321neos

As you’d expect, the Portuguese carrier’s fleet is not large, comprising seven aircraft: three A320s and four A321s. It has two A321neos (CS-TSF and TSG) and two A321neo LR variants (CS-TSH and TSI).

Its LRs have 190 seats (174 in economy and 16 in business), against 186 for its non-LR neos (170 in economy and 16 in business). ch-aviation.com shows that its LRs have an average age of 1.5 years, against 3.6 years for its neos. They replaced its A310-300s.

Airbus Updates No.2948

 Wizz Air To Base An Airbus A321 At Cardiff As Expansion Continues

Wizz Air UK has today shared that it will open a new base at Cardiff Airport in Wales. This will be the carrier’s fourth United Kingdom base, along with London Luton, Gatwick, and Doncaster Sheffield. For now, it will allocate a single Airbus A321 to the airport to assist with the launch of nine new leisure routes.

Wizz Air UK’s fleet will grow to 14 planes. Photo: Wizz Air

Year-round sun

According to Wizz, the new routes from Cardiff will enable passengers to take in plenty of sun across Europe and North Africa. Furthermore, the move will mark a considerable overhaul at Cardiff Airport and the local region as there will be more than 40 direct jobs and over 250 indirect jobs created. Notably, there will be an increase in yearly capacity at the site by over 350,000 seats.

Below is the schedule for Wizz Air UK’s nine routes from Cardiff next year:

Destination	Service Days	Starts	Fares From (One Way)
Alicante	Thursday, Sunday	March 28th, 2021	£29.99 ($37.40)
Faro	Thursday, Sunday (Summer) Tuesday, Saturday (Winter)	March 28th, 2021	£29.99 ($37.40)
Larnaca	Thursday, Sunday (Summer) Tuesday, Saturday (Winter)	March 27th, 2021	£36.99 ($49.44)
Tenerife	Monday, Wednesday, Friday	March 26th, 2021	£31.99 ($42.76)
Heraklion	Monday, Wednesday, Friday (Summer only)	March 26th, 2021	£36.99 ($49.44)
Corfu	Tuesday, Saturday (Summer only)	March 29th, 2021	£36.99 ($49.44)
Palma De Mallorca	Thursday, Sunday (Summer only)	March 28th, 2021	£27.99 ($37.41)
Lanzarote	Monday, Wednesday, Friday (Winter only)	October 1st, 2021	£31.99 ($42.76)
Sharm El Sheikh	Thursday, Sunday (Winter only)	November 1st, 2021	£45.99 ($61.47)

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Wizz Air UK opened new bases at London Gatwick and Doncaster Sheffield Airport just two months ago. Photo: Wizz Air

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Significant steps

Wizz Air UK managing director Owain Jones spoke about how exciting this expansion is for his airline. He expressed the commitment that the company has across the whole of the UK,

“The creation of our fourth UK base at Cardiff Airport reflects Wizz Air’s continued commitment to serving the UK market and generating economic growth, as we create local jobs, stimulate the tourism and hospitality industries and deliver on our promise of providing affordable, direct flights to exciting holiday destinations,” Jones said.

“Today’s expansion into Wales brings increased connectivity to the region, so passengers can take advantage of Wizz Air’s ultra-low fares to travel to their favourite sunny holiday spots on-board our young and green aircraft fleet. With the launch of 47 new routes from the UK this year alone, we’re making sure that passengers can make up for lost time in creating amazing travel memories.”

From the UK, Wizz now operates 132 routes out of 11 airports. Photo: Getty Images

Local importance

Meanwhile, Spencer Birns, interim CEO of Cardiff Airport, shared that his team is ecstatic to welcome Wizz Air UK. He said it is fantastic that Wales has been chosen to be the next base for one of the globe’s leading low-cost carriers. Altogether, the move will bring more choices at affordable prices for passengers to travel to some of the most popular holiday destinations from the Welsh capital.

Additionally, Ken Skates, Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales, summarized the move by emphasizing how important the step is for Cardiff Airport. There will be the creation of several jobs and an increase in activity. Therefore, the Wizz operations will ultimately help the hub emerge from the impact of the pandemic.

The executive added that many people in Wales are craving a vacation following a challenging year. So, he highlights that the new services, which are now on sale, will give greater opportunities for holidays to be planned in 2021.

Altogether, the Cardiff base shows Wizz Air’s intention of not slowing down with its expansions. Along with its progress across the UK, the brand has been making substantial developments globally, such as with its Abu Dhabi project.